It’s all about game time now. By completing Saturday’s walkthrough, the Winnipeg Blue Bombers have completed their final official team activity prior to the 111th Grey Cup in Vancouver.
The Bombers go toe-to-toe with Toronto Sunday at BC Place.
111th GREY CUP
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(Thomas Skrlj/CFL.ca)
NO STATE SECRETS
At the best of times, walkthrough is a light day of prep. Ahead of the final game of the season, though, there really wasn’t a whole lot happening. A spirited game of walk ball (a walkthrough day ball game) going on in one end zone and a few position group pictures were the most notable activities.
This is Winnipeg’s fifth straight trip to the Grey Cup and head coach Mike O’Shea admitted in his final media availability the team essentially has this week down to a science. The Bombers have been there and done that, and they know what’s coming and what to expect.
THE HERE AND NOW
Three titles in five years? Yeah, that’s not something motivating Winnipeg.
Future Hall of Fame defensive end Willie Jefferson gave some great insight on the team’s mindset when speaking on field with Ed Tait of BlueBombers.com.
“It’s not something we need to talk about. We need to be worried about this team. We’re not worrying about past teams and things like that. We’re worrying about this team. We’re worrying about this game. We’re about being where we are and living in this moment.”
The Bombers and Argos had their walkthrough in a chilly BC Place on Saturday (Kevin Sousa/CFL.ca)
DRESS FOR THE OCCASION
Friends, it was downright freezing at field level at BC Place. Even with the roof closed, the air conditioning had that place frostier than most hockey rinks. Which is why it was somewhat jarring to see certain members of the Blue Bombers milling around in shorts.
O’Shea and tailback Brady Oliveira (in flip flops, too) were among those pretending the temperature was normal. But, after wearing high shorts for Winnipeg’s full practice days, Willie Jefferson was noticeably in long pants.
THE WHOLE TEAM
It was cool to see a few notable injured players on the field for walkthrough. Receiver Dalton Schoen, linebacker Adam Bighill and quarterback Chris Streveler were hanging out with their teammates despite all three recovering from significant injuries.
DRESS REHEARSAL
Ahead of Sunday’s coast-to-coast telecast, it was fun watching TV crews getting the stadium ready. Most noticeable was TSN’s spider cam (the camera suspended above the field on cables) flying around overhead. It’s a whole lot more conspicuous when we’re not talking about thousands of people in the stadium.